An Altered Path
by Renteka-Bond
Summary: An explosion caused by the Sovereign in the Gallantmon vs. Beelzemon battle causes the Tamers to be split up, scattered through the realms.While traveling with Rika, Takato must reunite with his friends: and what is this 'Apex?Xover Rukato others inside.
1. Separation

Disclaimer: I wouldn't be writing this if I owned Digimon.

_Plot_

_What if in the battle of Gallantmon vs. Beelzemon, Beelzemon was smart enough to not waste his bullets on Gallantmon's armor, and when the Shield of the Just clashed with the Double Impact, it caused an explosion of epic proportions, but when the smoke clears, everyone is missing and Takato is stuck with…_

Pairings: Rukato Henjeri TerriLop RenaGuil Taiora Takumi Tomuzie(?) Mishiro

Vote for whether or not you want Daikari or Takari. If you don't like Tomuzie (Tomoki/ Tommy and Suzie as a couple) tell me and I won't use it. This story will be T for now but if I get good enough I'll change to M for Lemons.

And if anyone is willing, I am in need of a Beta. If you wanna help, please explain to me how that works first. Now, on to the story…

_**

* * *

**_

"Guardian Barrage!!"

"You annoying-"

This momentary distraction was just what Gallantmon needed to shift the battle in his favor. Before the smoke could clear, he slammed Beelzemon with his shield, causing him to fly back.

"Whoo hoo, YEAH!!"

"Huh?"

Takato looked over to his friends, only to find them cheering him on.

"Thanks Kazu!"

"Thank you everybody", Guilmon added. "All right, let's go!"

"Yeah, let's get'em!"

Their friends just stood in silent awe at the newfound Mega. Deciding to break the silence, Rika put in her 2 cents.

"Kenta was right, they have merged somehow."

"Guilmon and Takato have become one, indestructible fighting machine!"

"Lightning Joust!!"

Summoning a giant orb of energy from the tips of his lance, Gallantmon blasted a stunned Beelzemon, sending him sailing from the force of the laser.

"Stop!" Jeri shrieked. Ignoring the girl, Beelzemon stood, gun aimed straight for the Holy Knight. Angered by his decision, Gallantmon bellowed in his dual voice.

"You just never learn. Beelzemon, your Judgement Day is at hand. For the horrible things you have done, now you must pay; THE ULTIMATE PRICE!" Placing his shield in front of him:

"Shield of the Just!!"

As he watched the Aegis begin to glow, Beelzemon smirked and pulled out his recently retrieved-and hidden-gun from the holster on his back. Putting as much energy as possible into his twin Berenjena, he called his attack, unaware of the 7 crimson orbs spinning rapidly behind his back.

"Double Impact!!"

And all hell broke loose.

* * *

(Rika)

Heat.

Unbearable heat. It was as if someone was literally trying to rip the skin right off my body, inch by inch, then put it back on, over and over again until I just wanted to die.

"JERI!!"

I looked over to where I thought I heard the sound coming from, only to see Henry trying to reach the glum form of Jeri-who was desperately trying to find some kind of footing on the trembling ground-with Terriermon and Lopmon on his shoulders. Wait….

'_Suzie!'_ She was nowhere to be seen, and as I looked around, I realized something else too.

Kazu and Kenta were gone.

Looking forward I could vaguely make out the silhouette of Gallantmon, but it was enough to notice how he kept phasing in and out of his own shadow.

"TAKATO!"

As I ran forward I could vaguely hear Renamon yelling at me to stop. But I couldn't stop, not when the Gogglehead needed me. When I got closer, I could see how Gallantmon had split back into Takato and Guilmon, both going in opposite directions and seemingly unconscious. I could feel the presence of Renamon teleporting behind me, but out of the corner of my eye I saw a red flash and I could feel her no more. I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding.

I worked as best as I could under the stressful situation, shaking him, rolling him, even kicking him. But even through all that he still didn't wake up. Just as I was grabbing his goggles to snap them on his head, I felt a sharp pain in the back of mine and fell over, blacking out before I even hit the ground, but not before I felt the cylindrical pressure of plastic and glass hit my throat.

'_Stupid Gogglehead…'_

* * *

"Huh?" Looking up, the short white Digimon felt a tremor go down his spine for no apparent reason.

"Hey Bokomon, you feelin' ok?"

Jumping slightly and falling over the log he was sitting on, the Digimon-now known as Bokomon- alleviated his friends worry, shaking his head slightly from left to right.

"No need to worry, my friend. Just a little cold."

"Oh well if that's the case, then why don't you go to sleep now. And before you say it, I'll be glad to keep watch for the rest of the night."

Without further objections, Bokomon simply walked over to where the boys were scarcely separated from each other and lied down. Sitting with his back to the log, Takuya peered over the blonde girl sleeping away from the guys. Scooting over a silently as possible, he lifted the girl's head and gently placed it on his lap, trying as hard as possible not to wake her up. After waiting a bit, he cautiously brought his hand into her hair and began to rub and play with it. Not noticing the sigh of contentment from the girl on his lap, he looked up at the moon in thought.

'_I wonder how long we've been here…? It seems like forever since we beat Mercurymon and got Kouichi back. And yet we still haven't gotten to Cherubimon. It's like he's hiding or something. At least we kept Patamon safe._ He looked over to the other group, seeing Patamon with the pink warmer around his middle and using his hat as a pillow, snuggling up against his 'mother'. _'But I guess it doesn't really matter. As long as everyone's happy, what's the worse that could happen?' _

Looking back up, he saw a wisp of light drift through the sky. _'Shooting stars? Didn't know they had those in the Digital World. I already know what my wish is. _Taking a glance back down to the blond, he let out a smirk. He continued to rub her hair as his eyes grew heavier and heavier, until he eventually dozed off, unaware of the fact that in the Digi-World, new trouble was brewing, just below the surface.

* * *

"Mr.Kamiya?"

'_Shut up…_

"Mr.Kamiya?"

'_Shut up…'_

"MR.KAMIYA!!!"

"SHUT UP!"

Silence.

"Umm…uhhhhhhhhhhh…eeeeeeeeehhheehhhh…ummmmmmmmm…"

"Nice save." A few stifled giggles were heard. "Now, Mister Kamiya I must ask: Am I boring you?"

"No way, Mr.G, I mean, being told about your anus for 2 hours is _sooo _exciting." More giggles." Now if you'll excuse me I was trying to take a nap."

"sigh…Meet me outside, Taichi."

'_Whoa, he's serious. The only time he ever calls anyone by their first name is when he means business.' _"Whatever." Putting his hands in his pockets, Tai stood up and headed for the door. "Stupid old monkey, needs to get laid or somethin'" he murmured under his breath. He heard a sigh come from the back of the room and could practically feel the glare coming from a certain redhead in the back.

Keryu heard him though. Eye twitching, he followed the large-haired boy out side, ignoring the wild laughter coming from his students. Lazily closing the door as he left, he walked forward to his now moping student.

----- (A/N: this means that its different perspective, but in the same general area.)

Izzy sighed. He already had a general idea of what was going on, but he had to hear it to make sure. He knew Tai could feel him staring as he walked out, followed by Mr.Gerusagi, who, due to his laziness, left the door slightly ajar.

'_Good, now I won't have to get up to hear.'_ Refocusing back onto his laptop, he was unaware of the presence peering over his shoulder as he was typing frantically on his keyboard.

"Hey, Izzy, whatcha doin'?" He jumped up out of his seat, almost slapping the person the person behind, but failed when a soft, tiny hand grabbed his wrist as he was flailing around. Without turning around he soon realized who it was.

"Oh, sorry Mimi, you scared me. You know you shouldn't sneak up on me like that."

"Oops, my bad, hehehe. Sorry." She leaned forward to give him a kiss, but was stopped when a pair of fingers was placed on her mouth.

"Ah, Mimi, not here" he said nervously.

"Oh, poo," she pouted, "well you owe me later. Anyway, what are you doing?" she said, trying to look over his shoulder.

"Well, you see," he said while turning back around to face his computer, "I've detected some strange anomaly in the Digital World through my laptop and-"

"So what's the problem, Tai?" a voice could be heard from the hall, silencing all the chatter in the room.

'_So they've started…_

"I don't have a problem, Mr.G, I'm just tired." Tai replied.

"Now come on, Tai, I've known you since you were in Kindergarten. Heck, we live right next door for Pete's sake! You can tell me anything."

Tai was silent for a while, before he sighed and looked up at his friend. "It's…complicated, Keryu. I just… you wouldn't understand."

"Is it a family problem?" Noticing his silence, he came to an assumption. "It is a family problem, isn't it? Are your parents druggies? Are you being hit? Is your sister molesting you? THAT'S IT! Hikari _IS _MOLESTING YOU!!!" By now a few of the other teachers had come out to see what the noise was.

On the inside, the students were going crazy with laughter.

"AWW, HEHEHEH, man I can't believe, HAHAHAHAHA, he would even say that, HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAA!!!!"

Back outside…

After they had reassured the other teachers that it was nothing and that he was ok, they had returned to the hallway section outside the door.

"Anyhoo," by now the class was quiet again, "since I'm sure you aren't being molested (he smirked at the blush on Tai's face), and knowing who you are, I'm guessing its girl trouble."

"How did you…? Yeah I guess."

"Hmmm…would this have anything to do with that Sora girl?" The brunette boy visibly stiffened at the name. _'Bingo.'_

Back with Izzy…

'_I knew it.'_

Comments such as 'What a loser' and 'that poor guy. You know, he IS kinda cute' could be heard. He looked at Mimi's worried face. Oh yeah, maybe I should explain. By now, its common knowledge that Sora and Matt were going out, but, even before that happened, everyone could see the obvious crush Tai had on her. After he found out, he supported it, like any good friend, but whenever they weren't around, he would just sorta sulk for a while, unless there was something else to preoccupy his mind.But anyway, let's come back.

"I…its…well…listen, I do your homework, I do well on the tests, so could you please just leave me alone for a while? Not waiting for an answer, he walked down the hall, probably headed for the roof. Hearing Keryu sigh, Izzy looked back at Mimi, who had an uncharacteristically solemn look on her face. Looking around to make sure no one would notice, he leaned forward and gave Mimi a quick peck on the lips before pulling back and looking at her now smiling face. Smiling back, he watched as she got up and walked back over to her regular seat by the window, on the other side of the room. When he turned back to his PC his smile instantly soured.

'_What is with all these anomalies? Last time we checked, Azulongmon said that everything was normal on the Server. Hmmm…I'll have to talk to Gennai about this later.' _Looking back at the board, he watched as Mr.Gerusagi reorganized and began his science class anew.

* * *

"ZHUQIAOMON, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!" The Thunder God Dragon, Azulongmon, bellowed.

" It was the _humans_ fault", he spat, "if they hadn't come in the first place, I wouldn't have had to resort to that."

"That is no excuse. Do you know what you have done? You have just divided the Tamers, thereby limiting the power of the only beings that had a chance at protecting the worlds when _**It**_ shows up."

"Humph, we don't need those, pathetic humans to protect us. I can handle _**It**_ all by myself." In his arrogant boast, he did not notice the moving white speck on the ground.

"By the Digital God, I hope you're right…"

* * *

Takato could feel something rough under him and something soft over as he began to gain consciousness. Opening his eyes, he was met with a very scary sight.

'_Aghhhhhh, I'm blind, I'm blind!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!_

Maneuvering his arms, he felt around until he grabbed the object on top of him.

'_Hmmm, let's see, 2…legs.'_ Starting from where he grabbed, he slid his hands up until he grabbed onto something round. _'What's this?'_

He gave it a squeeze and almost immediately afterwards, he felt something push into his stomach. Thinking nothing of it, he continued his exploration up the 'body' until he got to the head. Feeling the hair on the head as he moved up, he felt his hand pass over some kind of material as his hand followed the hair into the air.

'_Now who has their hair like this…?'_

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

DING!!!

"MMOHHHM MMMY MNODM, MMIMA'MM ON MOP MOMMM MMMEEEE (Oh my god, Rika's on top of me)!!!

And what happened next was probably something out of the Twilight Zone, 'cause nobody, especially Takato, would have ever expected her to do.

She moaned.

He knew he was blushing, even though he couldn't see it._ 'I hope nobody ever sees this. Man, this is so embarrassing…_ But he also felt a tingly sensation in his pants and without even realizing it, the weight was lifted off of him, and he saw 2 lavender orbs right in front of him. At first he couldn't fell anything at all…then-

"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!"

An excruciating pain.

He reached down and cupped his crushed 'jewels', rolling on the floor, and probably crying. He could practically hear Terriermon making some kind of crude joke right now.

'_Wait, where's…?' _Jumping up- while trying his best not to sound like a wuss- he looked at Rika. "Where's Terriermon?" He failed miserably, his voice was so high pitched, he could have given Alvin a run for his money. He noticed the huge pink stain on her face as she desperately tried to hide her face as she answered him.

"I don't know. Last time I saw _anybody_ was before that explosion _you _caused." She said, making sure to emphasize the 'you'.

He scratched the back of his head nervously. "Eh heh heh heh…sorry. Hey why'd you hit me anyway? I mean, you seemed to enjoy it-"

_**Blam!**_ He didn't even see the fist coming before he passed out on the ground after being lifted a foot in the air after the monstrous punch.

Blushing confusedly, she turned around, and began to walk around, looking for any sign of their friends, or their bags.

'_Stupid Gogglehead…'_

* * *

"Wake up, Henry."

_**Smack!**_

The blue haired boy woke up with a start, rubbing his cheek as he sat up, looking at his diminutive companion.

"Terriermon! What was that for!?"

"Momentai, Hen. You were just sleeping for so long; I got bored lookin' at ya."

"Yeah, right. He was over here shaking like a wet dog this whole time."

"Aww, Lopmon, why'd ya hafta tell him that?" He put his head down in defeat as Lopmon was laughing. That's when I realized something.

"Hey Lopmon, why are we on a beach?"

True enough; the soft sand under him was sandwiched between the ocean behind him, and a thick forest in front of him.

"Well you see, after the explosion, when you ran for Jeri- and not Suzie (she glared at him as he looked away in shame) - we seemed to have fallen into some kind of rift. And when I awoke, I saw Terriermon having a nervous breakdown behind a rock."

The Wong couldn't help but laugh at his Mon's craziness. But in a fit of extreme embarrassment, he actually had something important to say.

"Oh yeah, well, you'd be scared too if you saw something purple fall out of the sky and cause a huge explosion really, really close."

By now, Henry was all ears. "Where did you see this explosion?"

Oh, so NOW you want my help. Make fun of me, laugh at me, take me for granted. But soon as you need me, you expect ol' Terrie-

"Terriermon! Just show me where it was!"

"Sheesh, Momentai already, it was right over that hill." Jumping on Henry's head, he pointed to a sandy hill to the left of the Tamer. As he stood up to walk, the brown bunny jumped on his shoulder.

As he reached the top of the hill, he could see a campfire a little ways down from the hill, occupied by 2 figures. The closer he got, the more distinct the figures became-now identified as a boy, with brown hair, and a girl, with sea green hair and-

'_Wings..? Naaa, trick of the light._ As he walked closer, he was spotted by the boy, who ran up and, at the same time they yelled;

"Who are you!!?"

* * *

(A/N)

Alright, first, PHEW, that took FOREVER to write. Secondly, about the whole molest thing, I was just joking. But molestation is no laughing matter, I mean, unless a teacher thinks that your younger sister is molesting you and he yells it in the middle of the hallway (at least I think its funny...). If molestation ever happens to you, you should tell as soon as possible, no matter what.

Now, on a lighter note, I would like to see if anybody can guess who those last 2 people were. If you want a clue, Read every name on the page (wink wink). Please give constructive criticism and advice if you have any. And tell me if you think my story is good or not. Sorry if the last part seemed rushed, but I was writing it at 5 in the morning a day be fore school starts- August 21, 2007.One more thing, IF YOU WANT KAZU AND KENTA, or RYO IN THE STORY TELL IF YOU DO OR NOT.

AVATAR SEASON 3 STARTS SEPTEMBER 21, WHOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO. If you want to see trailer, go to youtube and type 'avatar season 3 trailer'. If you want to friend me on their, my name is 'Dragoonice 1988'. RxR, and remember…

Rukato FOREVER!!!


	2. Chapter 2

Aww, Thanks you guys. I never knew how much reviews actually meant for an author until today. (August 21, 2007) I've been feeling really euphoric all day, on an otherwise solemn first day of high school.

To reply to some reviews:

**Brightshadow 5: **Thanks for the compliment, but in all honesty, there are a few good rukato's that stay sorta on plot, but if you think that, then it's your opinion.

**Ruki44:** again, thx. I didn't think I was that funny, but thx for the confidence boost.

**Frozen Twins:** I'll try to be better about the scene changes from now on. Oh, and about _that _pairing, I would do it, except for the fact that she isn't going to end up in that world.

**Kuroy: **Expect to see more from me later as I develop more skill (hopefully) and find the ability to trust my work and use more of my already thought up plots.

**Lord Pata:** Thx. I'll put into consideration your votes.

Alright. Now that that's over with, I have somethin' to say. I was thinking of making this into a sort of Author's universe type thing. You'll understand more at the end of the story. I appreciate the favs and alerts people have given me. I won't beg for reviews, or try to force reviews for chapters like some people do, but I would ask if you could kindly review. Oh and just to tell you now, this'll probably be my last disclaimer for the story, unless I need to do it.

Oh and about the girl's hair, I used wrong color. Her hair is actually aqua, not sea-green.

Matt's thoughts

Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon or The mystery people that I use (or their show.).

* * *

"Owee, ow ow, that weally hurt." 

Rubbing her head, Suzie stood up and looked around, trying to get an understanding of where she was (which isn't the easiest thing to do when you're 7 years old in a digital desert). Making sure to get the sand out of her eyes, she called to her companion.

"Wopmon? Wopmon! Where are you?"

BEEP!BEEP!BEEP!BEEP!BEEP!BEEP!BEEP!

Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her D-ark, which was the source of the beeping, and bared a toothy grin.

"Yay, a map, a map! This must be where Wopmon went to." Following the arrow, Susie sauntered through the sand and rocks. After walking for about 7 minutes, she came across a dense forest nestled near the border of the desert. Wanting to find her friend, although confused as to why she would just abandon her like that, she marched fearlessly into the unknown jungle, and she soon came across a clearing. But apparently, it wasn't empty.

'_Ooh, maybe they know where Lopmon is?'_ As she walked farther into the clearing, she squealed at the totally cute sight.

'_Aww, that's so cute! _o-o_' _She tried to be sneaky so she could closer, put tripped over a _huge_ (roll eyes now) rock.

_**Clam! Bam! Boom!**_

The clatter she caused while falling onto the logs and rocks piled in the center was enough to wake up the other people at the site.

"HEY, what's going on!!?" Looking over to the side, she saw a really tall boy with a blue bandana on atop his even bluer hair. He was glaring at her, already fully awake and standing, while the others were still trying to stop there hearts from racing.

"I'll ask you again, WHAT'S GOING ON!" He screeched.

"Wow, you're just like the Angwy kid."

"ANGRY? I'll show you angry!" Feeling a hand on his shoulder, the boy turned around, only to come face to drowsy-face with a sleepy JP.

"Hey, chill out Kouji, she's just a- AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" If he wasn't awake before he definitely is now! It seems he finally noticed the sleeping couple. Running over to the log, he grabbed the slowly waking Takuya by the scruff of his neck and started to shake him!

"What…do…you…think…you're…doing!?" He seethed.

"I don't know what you mean!" The boy in question replied, his voice a little shaky from the… well, shaking.

"You know what I mean! How dare you slip away in the middle of the night and take advantage of poor Zoë?"

Blushing in embarrassment-and a little anger at the accusation- Takuya tried to pry the giant hands off of his shirt, to no avail. "I didn't _do_ anything, JP, I was on watch duty last night and-"

"And apparently not doing it right." Everyone turned to see Bokomon, Patamon already tucked in his warmer, still asleep. "The point of watch duty is exactly that, to lookout for any enemies, not cuddle up with Zoë time."

"Wow, you have weally Pwetty haiwe." Turning again, the boys saw Susie playing with Zoë's- who was already awake- golden hair, twisting and curling it in weird fashions. There was a tangible tension in the air as they gazed upon the stranger in uneasiness. Seeing as the others were too distraught to do it, a short brown haired kid decided to step up to the plate.

Walking over to the girls, Tommy introduced himself. "Hi, I'm Tommy, What's your name?" Blushing, the little girl just stared, not at his face, but a little higher.

'_That's a weally big hat! (_0.o_)' _Focusing back on the boy, Suzie answered. "My name is Suzie…" She shuffled her feet nervously as she waited for them to yell again. Surprisingly enough, it never came.

Zoë chuckled at the little exchange. "Well, Suzie, my name is 'Zoë', the 'angwy' one is Kouji-Kouji humphed and turned around-, the cute, I mean Goggle headed one is Takuya-blushes and nervously turns head- the one with the jumpsuit is Jp- glares at Takuya- and the lazy one is Kouichi- snores loudly-. The 2 digimon over there are-"

"Bokomon and Neemon, wight?" she interrupted, showing the group her tan D-arc. The group let out a gasp (except Kouichi) as Bokomon ran forward, snatching the device out of her hands.

"How did you get a D-tector, little girl?"

"That isn't a D-tectowe; it's a D-_awc."_ Suzie insisted. "And I was using it to twy to find my fwiend." She groaned, as when Bokomon returned the D-arc, the map had disappeared. Takuya decided to speak up.

"Well don't worry, Suzie, we'll be glad to help you find your friend. By the way, who is this friend you're looking for?"

"My bestest fwiend in the whole world", she emphasized by spreading her arms wide open (which wasn't much, mind you)," Wopmon." A squeaky gasp from the back redirected there gaze yet again. This time, it was the now fully awakened Patamon.

"That can't be. There are no Lopmons on this Ser- Planet", looking around with shifty eyes to make sure no one noticed his almost slip-up, "and the only that actually is here is…"

"Cherubimon…"

2+++

Henry stared him straight in the eye. _'Who is this guy?' _Knowing that his mental inquiry would yield him no answers, he decided to speak his mind.

"Who-"

"I'm only gonna ask this once; who are you!?" The stranger interrupted. Henry was unnerved by the piercing glare this guy was giving him. And the killer intent he was radiating was astounding. Luckily, Henry was saved, in the form of a young aqua haired girl.

-----

Eureka had had enough of just sitting there, waiting on him to come back, so she decided to take matters into her own hands. Rising off of her spot on the ground, she dusted her pure white dress to get it cleaned, and tottered over to the far side of the beach, where she had just seen her boyfriend run to minutes ago.

"I'm only gonna ask this once: who are you!?" She recognized the voice as belonging to the one she was looking for, but who could he be talking to? Starting to get jumpy, she rushed over to him as soon as she could.

"What's wrong Renton?" Shifting the boy over to the side, she froze as she came face to face with a boy and 2 of the oddest looking rabbits she'd ever seen. The brown one was… kinda dingy, but the other one was-

"So CUUUTE!!"

Running over at a frighteningly high speed, crashing into the bunny, sending them down, sprawling on the ground.

-----

'_W-what just happened? I didn't even see her move!'_ Spinning his head slowly, he turned to see if what had happened, really happened.

Yep.

The weird girl was on the ground, Terriermon in her clutches, rolling around, giving the dog-bunny hugs and kisses, rubbing his fur in such a way that it made Terriermon twitch his leg up and down. In all honesty, despite Terriermon's probable future objection, he looked more like a dog today than he ever did as a rabbit his WHOLE life.

Feeling an ominous feeling from behind, I turned my head to look at the other bunny still resting on my shoulder. _'What the heck? Why is she mad?_'

If there was an award for _The Understatement of the Year_, calling her mad, would definitely take the cake. But I couldn't help but let out a chuckle and smirk as I saw the jealously in her eyes.

Bad move.

For some reason, the next thing I saw was a bundle of leaves as I was forcibly dragged into the woods by Lopmon. And the only thing I could think of to say would be-

'_Oh…Fuck.'_

-----

Groaning, Renton lowered his head in sadness, and whined. "Aww come on, Eureka, you've kissed that _thing _more times in the past 5 minutes than you have me the entire time we've known each other."

"Don't hate the player, buddy, hate the game." Terriermon quipped. Renton's left eye twitched, and just when he had the perfect comeback;

"AAAAAGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH, NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

3+++

Somewhere, on an island, in a village, in a house, on a bed, a group of digimon was huddled up together, overlooking their newest arrival. But, the weird thing about it is, they were all In-training and Freshies, and their newest arrival? A Mega. Now why do you think that they would nurse back to health a digimon that could pwn them like noobs in no time flat if he wanted to?

It's because they have plans. They can sense something. Something deep inside this one. So there gonna—

**Wyoom!**

A flash of light, followed by a gust of wind, and the mega on the bed, (tall, dark, and wild) had reverted back into a rookie (small, purple, and annoying).

"Ughhh…what hit me?" The small Imp-like digimon rose, rubbing it's head as it did. Looking around, he immediately flew off the handle.

"All right, what is it you jerk wads want?" He threw his arms down and reached for his gun, but ended up slapping himself in the thigh. _'Ow! Where's my…oh.'_ Looking down, he realized why he couldn't grab his guns. Scratching his head nervously, He tried to talk instead.

"Umm, so, uhhh, what were you _proper gentlemen_ doing, anyway?" It was starting to get uncomfortable._ 'Why haven't I just blasted them yet? Even without bein' Beelzemon I could totally waste these chumps.'_

_'Because even you have morals..._

Jumping up, Impmon grabbed the nearest digimon, which just happened to be a Koromon. "Alright, which one of youse guys said that?" Forming a tiny flame on his fingertips, he was just about to slam it in the tiny, In-training digimon's face when-

"I wouldn't do that if I was you." Turning, Impmon glared at the newcomer, before dropping the Koromon.

"Heh, and what's it to you, shrimp? Bada-Boom!!"

"Boom Bubble!!" The two attacks collided, causing a veil of steam to cover the room. Taking initiative, Impmon ran forward, fist ready to ram into the petite Digimon's body…head…feet…WHATEVER. But he was met with an unwelcome surprise.

"Kitty Claws (?)!!"

Impmon flew back a good five feet, as the opposing Gatomon land in a graceful fighting pose, standing protectively in front of the Patamon.

"Phew, thanks, Gatomon. I owe you one. But…" Smiling, Patamon walked around so he could see the fallen rookie. He was unconscious. "...I think you over did it a bit."

She shrugged. "I forgot he was a Rookie, so sue me." Walking over and picking up said rookie, she dragged his limp body forward; she was almost out the door before the other digimon in the room spoke up.

"Thank you, Misses Gatomon! I was really scared."

"Don't mention it…better yet, why don't you put in a good word with the boss. Maybe I'll get some more catnip or a ball of yarn…" She trailed off. Shrugging again, she turned back around and, followed by Patamon, she headed for the 'Boss's' room, the dangling Impmon still effortlessly hung over her shoulders.

4+++

Taichi sighed. He looked to the sky, trying to piece together the mess of problems that seemed to revolve around him.

'_What have I really been doing? I'm almost 18 now, and I still can't get over it. Kari already has a boyfriend (who I need to talk to by the way), Ken has a girlfriend, sheesh, even Agumon has a girlfriend. I just wish it wasn't her… _

He could faintly hear a ringing in the background as his hair blew in the sudden draft.

'…_Sora… what does he have, that I don't have? How could you choose him over me? Heh, I guess girls really do like the bad boys.' _He let out a morbid sigh. _'I know I shouldn't, but I can't help but feeling…that this is my fault. Maybe, if I hadn't tried so hard. Maybe…if I had let Matt be the leader, you would have noticed me more? Or maybe… what if I had told you sooner…' _He spread his arms, as if trying to absorb the sun's very life force, taking its rays of happiness for himself. Unfortunately, someone took it the wrong way.

"TAI, DON'T JUMP!!!"

-----

As the waves of green-and-white continued to exit the school, Izzy rested his body under the shade of a conveniently placed Sakura tree, which still had the rather large stump of it's sister tree, which was cut down, placed a few feet over to the side. It was a little bit wide, about a foot and 3 inches wide, and just a little bit shorter than Izzy himself. But like I said, he was resting. His computer screen had been showing the same thing for the past 2 hours; a green dot that was growing bigger, slowly but surely. Right now, it was about the size of the middle of a CD, with a white, smaller circle in the middle.

The girl next to him cuddled closer, resting her head on his shoulder, as he wrapped his arms around her waist. The wind blew, stirring the loose leaves, causing them to sway left and right in the air before falling ceremoniously onto the ground. It was peaceful, just the way he liked it. Just him and his girl, no one to disturb—

"Hey, Izzy, we're here!" He turned his head to see Matt, the one who yelled, followed by the rest of the DigiDestined and a bored looking Sora by his side. Gently placing the still sleeping Mimi to the ground, taking off his jacket for her to use as a pillow, he ran over to the others.

"Oh, good, you're here."

"Yeah, Izzy, we're here. So what was it that was so important that we had to get here right away?" Looking at his side, he could see that Sora was very upset about something as she kept looking in every which way, as if trying to find something.

"Sora, what's wrong?"

"It's Tai…I don't see him anywhere…" A look of anger flashed on his face as he thought about what _His_ girlfriend just said. Why the hell is she thinking about him when I'm right here? Just as quickly as it appeared it was gone, but not before being caught by the observant eyes of both Izzy and Mimi, who was a really good actor. "I'm pretty sure he's just fine _Sora_, so don't worry about it." He reprimanded, saying her name in a very possessive way.

Izzy, fearing the worst, decided to step in. "So, anyway, you guys, the reason I called you was because of…this." He said, turning his laptop to face his friends, showing them the dot, which was now the size of a regular CD, the white speck being a full blown circle now and the outer parts green, with splashes of yellow on the sides.

"Umm, what is that?" Cody, the youngest member, finally spoke up.

"Well, personally, I don't know, but I was thinking of talking to Gen-"

"TAI, DON'T JUMP!!"

Confused (and scared), the group followed the direction Sora was pointing and were met with a terrifying sight.

There on top of the school, stood Tai, arms spread eagle, standing dangerously close to the edge.

Or at least…he was…

-----

"TAI, DON'T JUMP!!"

Startled, Tai lost his footing and fell right off the edge. _'I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die!'_ Shutting his eyes, he made on last declaration. _'I never got the chance to tell you this Sora, but…'_ ""I LOVE YOU!:

Biyomon digivolve to… Birdramon!

The gogglehead stopped flailing as the giant orange caught him mid-fall and looped in the air, heading back to the ground. Back to Sora. But there was just one _little _problem.

'_We're going too fast! I'm gonna feel this in the morning…'_ And crash he did. Just not in the way he expected.

'_You know, actually, I wouldn't mind feeling this tomorrow. Or any other day for that matter.'_

He had been thrown (not crashed or fallen, thrown winkwink) into Sora, their faces smashed together in a dazed lip-lock.

Neither of them moved, not pushing or pulling away, just staring. Then, slowly, Sora's eye's began to droop and-

He was gone.

Looking up, she realized what had occurred. Tai was a half-foot above the ground, his shirt ruffled, courtesy Yamato Ishida. "All right, _Kamiya,_ where do you get off kissing my girlfriend?"

"Ooh, thanks for caring. I'm really feeling the love now." He joked.

"This is not the time for your jokes, Tai. What did you think you were doing, kissing _MY _woman, and WHAT THE HELL were you thinking trying to commit suicide?!" That statement had pushed Tai over the edge. He used all his strength to knock Matt's hands away, causing the blonde rub hi sore wrists.

"First of all, _Ishida, _Sora is a person, not a thing, she can do whatever she wants, whether you like it or not. And secondly, who do you think I am? No matter how depressed or angry I may be about some things, I'm not gonna run, because I'm not a coward like YOU!" Tai began to grow nervous as everyone just stared at him, mouths hung in shock. Replaying the words in his head, he realized why. "I-I mean—"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"

Everyone flinched and tried to cover their ears at the impossibly loud screeching. Looking around for the cause of the yelling, Izzy made an interesting discovery.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as a leg appeared from inside the laptop, coming to the side of Koushiro's head, another leg coming to block his other side. Stepping back, Izzy tried to get away as the rest of the body materialized, but he was moving too slow.

"Ooooooooohhhh, shiiiiiiiiiiittttt!"

**Blam!**

The others (people and digimon) would have been shocked at Izzy using a curse word, which never happens, if it wasn't for the even more interesting new guest. A brown-haired girl that was currently sitting on Izzy's face.

-----

All they could do was stare in shock. I mean, how often does a girl come out of a computer- pardon the times they went to the digital world over, and over, and over, and over, and over…- and sit on your computer geek's face? Never. Needless to say, Mimi was pissed!

"You HUSSY, what the fuck are you DOING!! Why I oughta…!" It took the combined power of Palmon's vines and Tentomon's and Agumon's raw power just to stop Mimi from bashing the girl's face in. _'I swear if that whore doesn't get off my Shiro-kun right now…!'_

'_Where am I? and why does my head hurt so much?'_ The girl looked up at the people staring –and yelling- at her. _'Why do these guys look so…'_

**Ding!**

"I know you guys!"

"Huh?" Everyone stopped what they were doing to turn back to her, even Mimi stopped flailing.

"Yeah I know you guys, you're from that show. You're…Matt…" She started with Matt and made her way right. "Gabumon, Taichi, Sora, Biyomon (who had a smug grin on her face for some reason), Yolei, Ken, umm, your that one that likes Kari, ummm, K.O., right?" The referred boy sweat-dropped.

"Actually, my name is Davis, heh heh." She blushed as she continued to go through the list.

"Ok, then you're T.k, Veemon, Kari, Cody, Armadillomon, Palmon, Mimi, Tentomon, and Agumon. Wait… isn't there one more?" _'Hmm, the ground is kinda soft…and wet. You don't think…' _Looking down slowly, she screamed as she saw the passed out head of Koushiro Izumi between her legs.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH, PERVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!" She kicked him in the stomach before she jumped away, trying to pull her shkirt as low as possible.

"What! You fell on him. He's not a… Oh!" Mimi stared angrily at her fallen boy-toy, his eyes swirly, sporting a massive nosebleed.

The digimon had already let her go so she was free to charge- and choke- the fallen redhead. But when she got about halfway there, she tripped over something. Expecting to rant to a rock, she was confused by what she saw. Following her gaze, the DigiDestined and their digimon were just as confused as her. On the ground rested…

A yellow Digivice.

"Wha… that's a weird digivice…did Izzy make it?"

"No…it's a D-arc…and its mine."

Davis ran up to the still flushed girl and started burning out questions. "Wow, that's really cool, you know. How did you get in the digital world? How old are you? Do you prefer blonds or blunettes? Who's your digimon?" The girl's eyes misted over after he asked that last question, causing them grow a grim pale color, potrating death and overwhelming grief.

"Leomon…"

_Who is this new girl? Why is she sad? What happened to Henry? Are Takato and Izzy pervs? (Yeah…) Did Rika really enjoy that? WHERE THE HELL ARE RENAMON AND GUILMON? Find out next time on…_

_An Altered Path…_

* * *

You should pretty much know the answer to almost all those questions or you haven't been paying attention. Now as I'm sure you've all noticed, No RenaGuil, or Rukato action in this chapter, but don't worry they'll be the only one's in that chapter, and maybe a lemon if you guys want one. Heck, you can even submit one of your own if you think it applies in some way to the story. Just send it to my e-mail or something. 

Ok so... This wasn't my easiest or best chapter…but here it is. Umm, if your gonna vote or something for the pairings, you might wanna do it soon, cuz if you don't I'm gonna use my idea. And some of you may not like it. School has been murder this first week, let me tell you. It would have been perfect if it wasn't for the one class that I got; Drama. I guess that's it.

How do you like RENT-on and Eur-EKA being in the story? If you don't like it, TOO BAD. It's one of my favorite pairings, so whatever. And they will have importance in this story, so yeah, no flames about that.

RUKATO Forever!!


	3. Chapter 3

"Ughh…"

Takato was finally coming to, rubbing the still visible lump on his head. As he rose to a sitting position, he could see that his strawberry-headed companion was still staying away, but it appeared she hadn't noticed him yet.

'_Good…' _Looking around, he saw two bags lying near Rika, one of them looking as if something had been quickly taken out of them. Then, as he looked around more, he noticed that they were in a different place; a VERY different place.

'_Why are we in a…room?' _The room had two beds, both pale brown in color. Near the door, was a large desk covered with a white drape, a stack of paper, ink, and a feather pen inside the bottle. _'Talk about old school.'_ Along the walls were different pictures, most displaying knights or wizards, battling against dragons or other such evils. But there was one picture that stood out the most. One Takato recognized immediately…Wizardmon.

It was different from the others. It was an average Digimon, no doubt, but it was drawn in a much clearer and detailed. By far the largest picture in the room, it displayed a translucent Wizardmon, wispy, white tendrilsof steam-like data flailed around him. He held his hands out in a protective gesture; his left hand holding his wand slanted across his chest- whose tip was glowing a bright purple color- and his right arm, propelling all of his might and energy in his staff. Behind him were two figures: a young brunette girl holding a pink digivice, and a feline Digimon who had a mixed look of joy and grief splayed across her face. Takato, being a budding artist himself, understood the difficulty portraying such emotion is when creating art. He had to give the guy kudos for pulling it off so flawlessly.

But the weirdest thing about the picture was the symbols on his head and hands. The symbol for Reliability and Courage rested upon his left and right arm, respectively, and atop his forehead, the Symbol of Light. _'Coool…'_

"How's your head?" Turning to the sound of the voice, he could see that Rika had finally noticed his consciousness and was looking right at him. At first he was confused as to how she knew about his head, but it clicked in his head soon enough.

Blushing, he scratched his head and turned away. "Uhh, y-yeah, it's fine, just a little sore, I guess." He didn't need to look to know she was blushing too.

"Not that, you idiot….this…" Turning around, she picked up a large object, wrapped in cloth, with two hands and tossed it over to Takato. He jumped to catch it as it flew, but immediately regretted it as he crashed on the ground with a loud **Thud!**

"What was that for? How do you expect me to catch something that weighs a billion pounds?" he whined.

"Stop exaggerating, it isn't THAT heavy," she said, ignoring her shaking arms after only holding it for 4 seconds, "and besides, you seemed to be able to hold it just fine earlier." Removing the cover from the object, he gasped in awe at what he saw.

It was a blade. It stood a good 4 foot 8 inches from tip to handle, just a little below his shoulder. The hilt was 7 inches long, going above his ear. The hilt was a plain burgundy color, but near the handle, there was a strange blue cylinder design that was cut into it. The handle was golden, curved upward in a wide U-shape. In the center was another blue shape, a diamond that only appeared on one side. The blade was almost 6 inches wide and was angled in a weird way. While the center was a deep black, the edges were a glistening white; which reflected the sun and sparkled even brighter.

"Umm…what is this?"

"You mean you don't remember?" He shook his head. "(sigh…) All right let me explain. It all started when I knocked you out…

( _Flashback_)-----

"Eh heh heh heh…sorry. Hey why'd you hit me anyway? I mean, you seemed to enjoy it-"

**Blam!**

He was out before he even hit the ground, which was easy because he was lifted a foot off the ground. Bringing her fist back, Rika turned around, blushing in a confused way.

'_Stupid Gogglehead. Where does he get off? Putting his face on my boobs… you know…that I don't have yet…And feeling my butt! That little pervert!' _She fumed as she started finding bags lying around, some torn, others burnt. The only ones that seemed to still be intact were hers and, coincidently (A/N: Yeah, right…), Takato's. Shrugging, she tossed them onto her shoulder and kept looking.

The ground was a hazard to cross due to the upheavaled stone and rocks, but she managed to get through and find an exit.

Walking back over to the fallen gogglehead, she picked him up, hoisting his left arm over her shoulder, and trudged towards the gate.

'_Okay, so this shouldn't be too hard. The castle's right there so all we need to do is sneak, drop the lump, grab Calumon and leave, __without__ getting blasted by the huge chicken.'_

She sighed. "Yeah right." As she came closer to the gate she began to grow worried as she could see the inside clearer and clearer. She entered the gate and wasn't happy. "OH, FUUUUUUCK!!!!!!"

The gate was big enough, but the bridge was so long it was nearly impossible to see the castle. _'I hate you so much right now, Takato…'_ Tightening her grip on the boy, she resumed her pace.

Suddenly, she felt a weird vibe go through her body as she was lifted into the air and thrust forward at a rapid pace. She let out a sigh of relief as she saw that she was inside a bubble. She began to pace a little before she got bored and sat down, waiting…

Waiting…

Waiting…

Her eyes wavered, opening and closing, getting lower and lower every second. She leaned back, the bubble barely visible, almost to her 'pillow'-

**Blam!!**

She jumped up immediately, eyes darting in all directions, looking for the source of the racket. She looked to the middle and saw…

"Calumon?" The white Mon peeled himself off of the surface as the bubble popped. Rika landed gracefully and caught the cream puff in her arms. Takato just rolled on the floor.

"Ri…ka…"

"Calumon, what's wrong?"

"So…tired." He closed his eyes and drifted off. How could he be this tired? Shrugging, she trudged over to the unconscious bum. The ground began to shake violently.

"Wha-what's going on?"

"Dot Matrix!!"

A deafening roar erupted from the castle, followed by silence.

"What was-" The ground ripped to shreds as the castle exploded into data. The group was blasted into the air, the castle disintegrating right in front of her. The last thing she remembers seeing is a purple wing.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

'_What hit me?' _She groaned as she rubbed her head and stood up. Looking around, she could see that Calumon was nearby, but where was Takato?

"Gogglehead, where are you!?" She shouted, hoping to get his attention, wherever he was. "Now why are we in a desert?"

"Well, the Southern Quadrant _is _known for being barren and rundown. I guess this is just an example of that, but how _did _we get here? I thought we were still at the Entrance field."

Her answer was cut short before she could even start it as a roar - not quite deafening, but still fear inducing - permeated the silence.

"What was that?" Rika asked, her fear well hidden.

"I don't know; let me scan…oh, yeah…" He fought back tears as the memories flooded back to him. He felt a pair of hands shake him slightly as he remembered where he was.

"Takato, come on. Whatever it is, we don't want to wait to find out." A raspy, harsh voice spoke out.

"Grrr…the Shining Digivolution…and two humans…perfect." Well, it sounded more like a growl, but they were able to get the jist of it. Luckily, Takato didn't need to have a D-ark to know what the Digimon was.

"DarkTyrannomon…" The two humans backed away; even Rika wasn't too arrogant to try to fight a Champion without any kind of protection or force. DarkTyrannomon advanced, each step rattling the earth below them. But then they simultaneously noticed something weird. _'He's not coming for us…He's going for Calumon!'_

Takato was rooted to the spot. What could he do? He was just one guy; one KID. You can't just expect him to go running off to be the hero, heck; he barely did that when he had Guilmon with him. Rika stared at him, trying to figure out some plan of action the leader had come up with, although she would never admit it, he was the only one she'd ever take orders from.

Seeing that Takato wasn't going to do anything, she rushed in, trying to grab Calumon without stopping. Unfortunately, the DarkTyrannomon noticed and accelerated his advance. Charging up, the dinosaur Digimon hoisted his tail in the air.

"Iron Tail!!"

The redhead dove for Calumon, trying to roll, but, do to the sand, her body merely stuck, leaving her completely vulnerable to the tail.

"RIKA!!" Luckily, the dive moved her and Calumon back far enough to avoid the full brunt of the attack, but she would have to stay off her leg for a while.

DarkTyrannomon looked annoyed, but satisfied at the new event. Two birds and all that, right? He brought his head back, the flames dancing in his belly.

'_What do I do…I can't…why…I'm so weak. I just…I need to SAVE HER!!!'_ The Catalyst glowed a bright red, shooting a blinding beam of light towards an unknown target.

"Fire Blast!!"

Rika looked upon her demise in surprising remorse._ 'So much unsaid…Grandma, I'm sorry I never appreciated you more. Mom…I really shouldn't have been so rude. You were doing the best you could. Ryo… I still hate you. Gogglehead. It's too bad. I really needed you now. But I don't blame you. It's just…' _"TAKATO!!"

Unknowingly, she shut her eyes, expecting to feel the searing waves of heat as she burned alive, but instead, all she felt was a cool, relaxing breeze. Opening her eyes, she gasped in shock and awe.

"T-takato!" Takato was positioned directly in front of her, spinning a rather large Zweihander to deflect the flames directed at them. Turning around, she gasped as she looked at his forehead and the pupils of his eyes. A triangle encompassed in a circle, 3 separate triangles branching off of the original at even angles.

The Digital Hazard.

"Are you ok, Rika?" She nodded dumbly. "Alright then. Back up a little for me, if you can." She obliged, entranced by his eyes.

Takato applied a horizontal slash, effectively stopping the spin and dispelling the flames. Moving forward, he sliced upward, digital dino arms flying through the air.

'_I didn't even see him move! He was so fast!' _Back flipping away, the gogglehead hoisted the blade on his shoulder.

"Iron Tail!!" Takato grabbed a speck of dirt and, with his pupil spinning, flicked it into the air. He blocked the tail with the side of his blade, not even budging an inch. He ran up the edge of the tail, flipping off the Rex's head. The speck expanded, becoming a large, hovering boulder. Extending the Lombardia (name of the sword) via the blue diamond, he rebounded from the boulder, a blue aura forming and spinning rapidly around the blade of the sword.

"Comet Strike!!"

**BLOOM!!**

The DarkTyrannomon burst into data, which was absorbed into the Hazard and blade alike. His forehead glowed a golden-pinkish light.

8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o88o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o

3 Levels Gained:

Str: 8

Agi: 2

Def: 5

Digi-Arts: 6

8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o8o

Takato landed back next to Rika, offering his hand to pick her back up. He stumbled and fell to his knees, then fell completely onto Rika (not that way), passed out.

"Hey you big lug, get offa me-" The ground rumbled and shook, the ground feeling lighter and less solid as the rumbling increased. She continued to struggle as she could feel the ground sink, when abruptly, the ground ripped away!

"AHHHHHHH!!" She could feel herself sinking away, into the digital abyss, to forever be lost within. Just when she had given up hope, two metallic arms grabbed her body, as well as Takato and Calumon's- in mid-fall. She could have sworn she'd seen that person, or Mon, before, she just couldn't remember where, and right then, she could care less.

_(Flashback End)----- _

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"And that was how we got here…" She recalled, plus or minus a few details.

"Huh…you'd think I'd remember that…maybe my goggles really are on too tight…?" He fiddled with the goggles, checking to see how tight they were. "So where's Calumon?" He barely finished asking before the huggable Calumon glomped his face.

"Hehe, right here, silly!" Calumon slid into gogglehead's waiting arms as his blanket fell carelessly to the floor. Takato cradled the tired Digimon as he tried to get into a comfortable position.

"So, Calumon, I'm guessing you had something to do with this." He pointed to the large blade resting on the bed. "From what Rika told me, it appeared right after your symbol glowed. But what I'm wondering is how you managed to get us here too." The cream puff looked more confused than ever.

"What are you talking about? I didn't do anything. I was too tired…" He picked up his discarded blanket, scuttled back up to Rika's lap, leaving Takato, and promptly went back to sleep.

"Well, if he didn't get us…wherever we are, then how could we have gotten here, Rika?"

"I believe I can answer that question, Brother." The pair looked over to the sound of the new arrival, there necks whiplashing from the speed they flew. They gaped at the stranger. He was familiar. VERY familiar. They had seen him just a few hours ago, and seeing him like this was a little…much.

"G-Guilmon?! How did you…?" The knight chuckled heartily.

"I believe you are mistaken, Brother, I am not He. But you aren't too far off." He whipped out a long, intricate, golden pole axe. His cape twisted and twirled, despite the lack of wind in the building. "This is the Dynas, a tool not unlike your Gram. I am a variant species, a modified Digimon created due to the birth of Gallantmon. I am… MedievalGallantmon!"

Takato was speechless. Who would've thought he could have created _another _Digimon. Granted, it was merely a different version of one he'd already made, but… anyway, although Takato was stumped, Rika was much more intuitive.

"So, wait, if you were created from Gallantmon's birth, which was only a few hours ago, how did you get so big so fast?"

"Ah, very perceptive, M'Lady. I plan to answer _after_ I show you around the town." Not waiting, MedievalGallantmon exited the doorway, heading to who knows where. Rika turned to her companion, seeking answers.

"So, _Creator, _what should we do?" Takato shrugged.

"Eh, I say we trust him. I mean, if he was gonna try to decapitate us with that killer lance, he would have done it already." He allowed her to leave first, Calumon held protectively in her arms, before attempting to lug the heavy Zweihander, failing miserably.

"Ugh, why does this thing have to be so heavy?" His query was met with silence, all other occupants having left the room. Huffing, the goggle obsessed lad dragged the sword, doing his best to not leave scratch marks on the perfectly crafted wood floors.

Halfway through the hallway, he stopped for a break and noticed the many pictures splayed throughout. Storing that for later, he trudged across the seemingly endless valley, coming to the sight of a knight and a very annoyed Rika waiting at the door.

"Could you be any slower?" He scratched the back of his head and shrugged. "Whatever. So, MedievalGallantmon, _now _can you tell us where we are?"

"Have patience, M'Lady. Before I can do that, I must show you around our town."

'_Our?'_ The twin doors flew open and their visage was met with an amalgam of decorative wood, rustless metal, and pure white smoke. After walking onto the dirt road, it was apparent that they were most likely in the center of…wherever they were.

"You know, Brother, I can carry that if you want." Takato perked up.

"Oh, really, tha-"

"No, Gallantmon, don't. Let him carry it. It's his fault anyway." Without even turning to look at them, she walked away, heading straight down the street, Calumon in her arms. MedievalGallantmon shrugged, shook his head, and followed the redhead.

o.0!

Takato sweat-dropped and sighed. Limping, he dragged the Lombardia through the empty village roads…

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The group stopped at an elegant looking domicile. The house was large, although, apparently, only 1 story tall. There were three windows on the wall, each framed by an intricate design. Multi-colored- mostly yellow and blue- wisps flowed and whirled in a conflagration of colors and hues. On the corners of each frame was a different colored flower, beautiful vines stemming from and around the main design: a yellow fox head.

"What are we doing here?" Rika asked.

"Well, I have a feeling that a certain acquaintance of mine will want to be around for the tour. I don't think she would appreciate it if I didn't bring her along. You know how women are." Rika scoffed. MedievalGallantmon felt a tapping on his back and turned, only to see a smug looking Takato leaning onto his sword, arms crossed. He wiggled his finger in a come-over-here type fashion. MedievalGallantmon complied, hunching over to see eye-to-eye with the short human.

"So, MedievalGallantmon, what are we talking about here; a 7, 8, 9, what?"

"I am sorry, Brother, but I am confused? What do you mean?"

"You know, how hot is your 'associate'?" MedievalGallantmon looked offended.

"TAKATO! THIS IS BARELY APPROPRIATE CONVERSATION!" He hunched back over. "But just between the two of us, she's a-"

"I'm a what?"

"AAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" The duo toppled over, landing in a crumpled heap on the ground.

The female Digimon hovered over the pair, cerulean eyes flaring and glaring from behind the shaman's navy fox mask. Her blue gauntlets were oddly reminiscent of Renamon's, the key difference being in color. There were various plates of armor spread around her body, leveled atop an all black body suit. A gray staff was held loosely in her grip.

"_This _is the acquaintance you were talking about, Gallantmon? Personally, I think you could do a lot better."

"What did you say? First of all, it's _MedievalGallantmon _to you, wench!"

"WHAT!? Who do you think you are…" Takato and his variant buddy merely sweatdropped. It was gonna be a long day…

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A single rock rested atop a dilapidated stoop. It sat there, its cracked edges crumbling and scattering in the faint wind. A long, silver rod sailed overhead, multihued rays of light bursting from its tip. The rock rumbled and shook, scooting it inch by inch, before falling from the stoop. It clanged off of a pipe extending from the wall, sending it into a crackling freefall! It bounced arbitrarily on a red, leathery brick before finally landing in a puddle.

"OwowowowwowOW!" Guilmon rubbed his noggin affectionately. He sat up quickly and immediately wished he didn't. A foul stench permeated his senses, choking the oxygen from his Digi-lungs. He crawled forward, vision blurry from the invading odor. He crashed noisily into a metal cylinder, causing it to roll away, out of the tiny alley. He groaned, giving into his sudden fatigue.

"Killing Stone!!" Guilmon yelped and leaped a good 10 feet off the ground and fell on his butt.

"Why do all these evil rocks keep hurting _meeee…_" He whined. He looked down at his feet, only to see a yellow ball of fluff erupt from a rather large pebble. "Renamon, what was that for?"

"You jerk! You nearly killed me, and that's the first thing you say? No 'are you okay, Viximon' or 'oh I'm sorry, Viximon, did I hurt you'. Why I oughta…Killing Stone, Killing Stone, KILLING STONE!!!" She pelted the digi-dino with relentless speed as he cringed in fear.

"Ok, Ok, I'm sorry!" She morphed back and plopped herself onto his head.

"Well, you should be…you okay?"

"Ow, Renamon, that really hurt…" Viximon huffed and smacked his head with her tail.

"I'm not Renamon, I'm Viximon! Geez, some people…" She felt herself be lifted by a pair of clawed appendages.

"Really? So this is your Rookie form." He inspected the vixen tiny form.

"No, this is my in-training."

"Are you serious?! I always thought you were an ultimate the whole time…you're really strong."

"Have you been living under a rock this whole time? What an idiot!" Guilmon frowned a bit before putting her back on his head, failing to notice the pink hue on her normally white tail.

"Wow, Viximon, you're a lot meaner when you're like this." Standing up, Guilmon exited the alley. There were a bunch of cars, some red, some yellow, some white, but nothing too spectacular. Guilmon walked through the empty streets, nothing really catching his attention as interesting or worthwhile. Viximon's ears perked up, her amplified hearing picking up the distinct hum of a bell, followed by a large mass of thumping sounds.

"Whoa-wo-WHOA!!" A blue streak flipped over the pair, crashing into a trash can that was sitting nearby, a wide rod skidding across the oddly level ground.

"Guilmon! Just up that hill is some kind of school. Maybe Rika and Takato will be there!"

"Yay, TAKATOMON!" Guilmon ran up the hill. And ran. And ran. And…ran… Guilmon collapsed in a crumpled heap halfway up the hill. "Yay…Tak…mon."

"Oh, man, why'd this hill have to be so big? Even I'm tired."

"Really?" Guilmon asked.

"No, not really. Now can we please go?"

"Fine-"

**Chk-Chk!**

Guilmon could feel the cold steel against his neck, his ears rising in apprehension..

"What are you?" A rough voice shouted.

"Are you sure this is what it was, Moondoggie?"

"No, Mathieu, I'm sure it was that other random dinosaur that tripped me."

"Whatever! It doesn't matter what it is. Either way, it still needs to be disposed of." The rough sounding guy said.

"Killing Stone!!" Viximon slammed into the rough voiced man's head, his gray hair rubbing against his eyes.

"HOLLAND!" The leader's two friends shouted. Viximon slammed against the other 2 as well, knocking them all into a stoning frenzy. She jumped on Mathieu's face a few more times before leaping over to Moondoggie.

"Oh, no you don't!" Holland grabbed the rock out of the air, causing it to morph back into Viximon. He placed the barrel right between its eyes. "Alright, that's it!"

"WAIT!" The group of five all turned to see a group of three running down the hill. "Don't do it, you guys!. The tallest boy jumped in front of Guilmon, using his own body as a shield. A little blonde girl grabbed Viximon from Holland's clutches, hold the In-training protectively.

"Get away from those things, they're dangerous!" Holland barked.

"NO! There's nothing dangerous about them. They're just digimon!" The brown-skinned boy yelled back.

"CH! You kids are crazy! Digimon aren't real." Moondoggie scoffed.

"Nuh-uh, digimon are real. Look, it's Guilmon, the one from Tamers!" Moondoggie squinted and leaned forward.

"Oh. My. GOD!"

"What, what is it Doggie?" Moondoggie turned around slowly, eyes wide with childish glee.

"Digimon…the Digimon are here!"

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Whoohoo! Finally finished! Now I can get on with the story, now that we know where everybody is.

R!!!!

P.S. Is the structure too confusing? I never noticed but somebody said it was. Just tell me so i can fix it.


	4. A quick apology and Update to all

Just a heads-up to anyone out there who is still looking forward to this or any of my other stories; I am, in fact, still working on these. I've been in the process of organizing my thoughts more fully as to better prepare for the story that I'm trying to portray. This Page will be deleted soon to make way for some Actual story progression. A heartfelt apology and sincere gratitude to any and all past/present/or future readers,

Renteka-Bond.


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